Studio 3.4 - The Passenger 1975

In the absence of a physical field trip Studio 3.4 offers a virtual one. Our work this year will use Antononi's 'The Passenger' as our journey and destination. As such ‘The Passenger’ will be central to the investigations of our studio, taking the place of the field trip. 

About the Film 

Leah Bordenga writes:

“To leave architecture out of a conversation about Michelangelo Antonioni’s films would be like discussing Alfred Hitchcock’s form without acknowledging suspense. These frameworks are what govern the characters’ behaviour and psychological state, forming a narrative through which we can see their personal worlds. For Antonioni, the setting and the background becomes the subject, or perhaps more accurately, the character that shapes the world of his films and gives the audience insight into the deeper meaning of Antonioni’s films. The Passenger (1975), starring Jack Nicholson and Maria Schneider, is the first of Antonioni’s films to take place in multiple countries. Africa, England, Germany, and Spain are the subjects here, illuminated to reflect questions of mortality and the loss of individuation with the need to overcome oneself.”

The Brief

We will be asking you to develop your own project brief around the broad notions of dwelling that we observe in the film. As such your ‘dwelling’ may take many forms, from a civic centre, a school, a cinema, to an office, and of course the dwelling, or dwellings, houses and housing. The studio will comprise a number of masterplan groups and each will develop a site in a location inspired by those of the film. The members of a master planning group will design their own projects within the framework that the group devises.